One of my favourite parks in Dubai – and the UAE – was Al Ittihad park, on Palm Jumeirah. Located on the golden mile, to either side of the monorail, it was opened in 2012 and featured mostly native trees and planting. It truly felt like a refuge within an urban jungle. It wasn’t perfect,
On my recent visit to Dubai, I found another Brownfield site (abandoned development might be more accurate) where some interesting natural regeneration is occurring. Like most such places, it is presumably awaiting redevelopment. This particular area is located in Bur Dubai, next to Creek Park. If you’ve read any of my older posts, you will
Last month (January 2026) I visited, for the first time, Al Mushrif park, on the outskirts of Dubai. I’ve passed it many times on my various visits, but this time I went straight there from the airport in my hired car, having arrived early morning, with the day to myself. I’d left a cold, drizzly
First published in Landscape Middle East magazine, September 2024 (with different title). If there is one thing that makes being outdoors bearable in an urban arid environment, it is trees. It can be up to 20°C cooler in the direct shade of a tree, whilst a street with trees planted along it will be several
On this last day of the year, it’s wet and dull outside, so I thought I’d look back at some of the amazing trees I’ve had the privilege to encounter this year whilst visiting and working in the UAE. Some of these I have worked directly with, surveying them as part of a project or
This is last in a four-part series of articles on this subject, somewhat separated from the other three by time, because of COVID. Links to the first parts are at the bottom. In searching for a new way of creating natural, non-irrigated landscapes in the Middle East, I have already shared how certain species, often
In part one of this four-part series, I discussed the colonization of brownfield sites in the UAE’s cities with a range of trees and shrubs – almost all of them “exotic invasive” species. I argued that these could be forming the basis of new, adapted ecologies. To revise those arguments, please the link at the
This is the first of a four-part article, links to the others are at the end. These articles are all a part of the same thought progress, which has been brewing for some time and started with an article I wrote two years ago, in March 2018. I think this is an important subject, and
The other side of work I undertake in the Middle-East region (other than tree consultancy) is planting design, for creating new landscapes always brings me a special joy. When they are in public spaces, I love the chance it gives to interact (albeit remotely) with many people in place, over time and hopefully, enhance their
A problem, or an opportunity for a new landscape paradigm? I was recently working on a tree project in Abu Dhabi when I came across a derelict site which intrigued me with it’s range of exotic self-seeded, non-native plants. The site was next to the Corniche and sandwiched between the Formal Park, my hotel and
